Gina Haspel in the dock for doing her duty, legally

NY Daily News

"President Trump’s choice of veteran CIA operative Gina Haspel to lead the nation’s top spy agency has set off a cascade of protest from advocates who condemn her as an apologist for torture, if not a monstrous war criminal.

"Haspel’s role in the agency’s enhanced interrogation program deserves Senate scrutiny. But the effort to drown her in righteous indignation, overlook the rest of her long and strong record, and deem her summarily disqualified from leading the intelligence shop is woefully misguided.

"More than 16 years after the destruction of the World Trade Center, there is much the American public still does not know, and may never know, about the U.S. government’s secret program of spiriting away and questioning terrorists.

"What we do know is that Haspel reportedly oversaw a secret prison in Thailand where one Al Qaeda operative, mastermind of the U.S.S. Cole bombing, was waterboarded three times.

"Widely circulated reports that Haspel also oversaw the interrogation of Abu Zubaydah, who was waterboarded some 70 times, have since been corrected. She did not.

"She did, however, reportedly follow through on a boss’ order to have videotaped evidence of Zubaydah’s sessions destroyed. She must answer to the morality and legality of that act." . . .

Sessions makes his move

J.R. Dunn  "Back in 2011, the indomitable Peter Schweizer published Throw Them All Out, a detailed examination of political corruption as it is actually practiced in the halls of Congress.

"In his investigation, Schweizer found one single member of Congress against whom no allegations could be held – who had never taken a dime that was not his, had never cut any backroom deals, had never, simply put, played the game.

That individual was Jeff Sessions.

"That fact is all you need to know to understand why Donald Trump selected Sessions for the Department of Justice, and why Sessions has followed the course he has in taking on the "Russia collusion" coup effort.

"Sessions is the quintessential Eagle Scout.  He will follow the rules down to the last subclause and will not make his move until every "t" has been crossed and every "i" dotted.

"We saw the first results of this approach last Friday – in dealing with Andrew McCabe, this century's prime example of a "cookie full of arsenic.' " . . .

Trey Gowdy: It Wasn’t Republicans And It Wasn’t Trump Who Recommended McCabe Be Fired It Was His Own Fellow Agents

FBI officials recommend Andrew McCabe be fired

Weasel Zippers

Former Ass’t FBI Director: High-Ranking People Throughout Government Protected Hillary Clinton From Being Indicted

Former assistant FBI director: High-ranking people throughout the government had a plot to protect Hillary Clinton from being indicted

"Former assistant FBI director James Kallstrom suggested Sunday morning that the constant shifting of high-ranking government officials over the last year is related to an internal plot to help Hillary Clinton during the 2016 presidential election.

" 'I think we have ample facts revealed to us during this last year and a half that high-ranking people throughout government, not just the FBI, high-ranking people had a plot to not have Hillary Clinton, you know, indicted," Kallstrom said on Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo."

"Kallstrom, who worked at the FBI for 27 years, was responding to Bartiromo's question about whether he thought that someone in the FBI was directing officials to protect Clinton.

" 'Do you think somebody was directing them or do you think they just came to the conclusion on their own, this leadership at the FBI and the Department of Justice, that they wanted to change the outcome of the election?" Bartiromo asked.

"Kallstrom also said officials had a scheme to blame Trump for the Russian interference during the 2016 election.

" 'They had a backup plan to basically frame Donald Trump and that's what's been going," Kallstrom said." 

McCabe's Domino Is Only the First to Fall  "Oh, what a tangled web the unindicted co-conspirators in the Deep State coup to keep Hillary Clinton out of prison and Donald Trump out of the White House have woven.  When you tell the truth, the adage goes, you never have to remember anything.  But when you lie, you have to remember the lies you told to cover the earlier lies, and you certainly have to keep your story in line with your other co-conspirators.

"That Andrew McCabe, in his response to his firing, failed miserably on this score, implicating former FBI Director James Comey, is the conclusion of George Washington University law professor Jonathan Turley:" . . .

James Comey perjured himself before Congress, before the FISA court, and before the American people.  Indict McCabe, then Comey, then just go down the list.  McCabe promised to take people down with him if he was fired.  Time to make some popcorn.

Hillary stands with Indian-Americans ....in India

Steve Hilton  . . . "Whoever.” “You name it.” Clinton’s catalog of insults to the people she once hoped to represent typically ends with the rhetorical equivalent of an exasperated monarchical hand sweeping people away as if they were serfs who had dared to show their dirty faces to the queen.

"But Hillary really outdid herself recently in Mumbai in India.

"After dismissing American women who dared to vote against her as brainless robots when it comes to politics – this from the self-styled champion of women! – she went on to describe Trump supporters (roughly half the country, let’s remember) as people who “didn’t like black people getting rights, you don’t like women getting jobs, you don’t want to see that Indian-American succeeding more than you are.”

"Let’s not waste too much time on how unintelligent, offensive and bigoted that remark really is. The best response might just be to point to one prominent Trump supporter who now serves in  the president’s Cabinet: U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley, an Indian-American professional woman who as governor of South Carolina not only took down the Confederate flag but said that it “should never have been there.' ” . . .

Hillary Clinton tries to explain her comments on Trump voters after backlash  

Clinton summed up Trump's message as "you know, you didn't like black people getting rights, you don't like women, you know, getting jobs. You don't want, you know, to see that Indian American succeeding more than you are."

The Media, the NRA, and Islam

It's too bad the American left doesn't treat the NRA even half as fairly as it treats Islam.  "That would refer to American Muslims, 13 percent of whom, according to the Pew Research Center, say they support suicide bombings and other violence against civilians in defense of Islam.  (According to Pew, the percentage is considerably higher among foreign Muslims.)

Yet every time a jihadist goes on a killing spree, the American left, through its propaganda arm – otherwise known as the mainstream media – is quick to remind us that Islamic terrorism is an aberration and in no way reflective of the "religion of peace."

"In fact, jihadist terror is so aberrant that countless talking heads, including the one who used to occupy the White House, have declared it un-Islamic, going so far as to claim that a vast terrorist army known by various names, but most conventionally as the Islamic State, has nothing to do with Islam.

"That would actually be laughable – sort of like claiming that the National Rifle Association had nothing to do with guns – if thousands of people weren't being slaughtered.

"Yet countless Islamic scholars, learned men (they're all men) who have done little other than study the Koran their entire lives, boldly contradict the leftist cadre of pundits and professional apologists, most of whom are not Muslim and have no expertise in the field of Quranic study (sort of like Dianne Feinstein defining an "assault rifle"), by saying that in their learned opinion, what terror networks like al-Qaeda and the Islamic State are doing – visiting violent jihad upon the infidel – is exactly the duty of every true Muslim and that anyone who says differently is either an infidel or a heretic and should be killed.  (How's that for the religion of peace and tolerance?)

"So whom are you going to believe, Anderson Cooper, who knows as much about Islam as he knows about picking up girls in singles bars, or ten thousand imams who have literally memorized every verse in the Quran?" . . .By Chuck Hustmyre

McCabe's firing demonstrates that the swamp is deep

Jack Hellner  . . . "The investigation by Mueller is and has always been a witch hunt targeting Trump and it is destroying a lot of people, but the media and Democrats only have cared so far about McCabe and other FBI agents who clearly violated their duty by protecting Hillary, targeting Trump, and not telling the truth about it. 

"The swamp is deep and Trump is obviously not the problem. The main problem is that the majority of the media is protecting the swamp instead of the American people. I would think they would be ashamed but they are not. They continue to double down."

Ohio student suspended for staying in class during National Walkout Day

Fox News

"An Ohio high school student said he tried to stay apolitical during the National Walkout Day over gun violence but was suspended for his choice to remain in a classroom instead of joining protests or the alternative, going to study hall.

"Jacob Shoemaker, a senior at Hilliard Davidson High School, said he didn’t want to take sides in the gun-control debate consuming the country. If he went outside for the walkout, he said, he would be supporting gun control. If he stayed in the common area of the school, he said, he would be seen as supporting gun violence and disrespecting the 17 lives lost in the Parkland, Fla. High school shooting the month before.

"Jacob had met with the school’s principal on Tuesday, a day before the rally, for about an hour to find out what exactly the walkout was supporting. But he said the principal reportedly told him it was for the “students to express themselves.”

"This left Jacob wondering if it was a memorial for the lives lost or a show of support for gun control." . . .

Starkville Pride

Put simply, there are only three things a government can do when it comes to human behavior – it may prohibit, permit, or promote. When that behavior takes the form of assembling to advance a particular viewpoint, the only reasonable option is to permit it

Mike Adams  "Most of my conservative friends understand that the current war on so-called offensive speech poses a serious threat to the future of the republic. Many of them understand that it is particularly dangerous because hypocrites posing as classical liberals wage it in a selective manner. Thus, conservatives must be careful that they engage this war in a principled manner. Unfortunately, with their recent efforts to shut down a gay pride parade in my former home of Starkville, Mississippi, some conservatives have demonstrated a disturbing lack of principle. Accordingly, I wish to go on the record in support of Starkville Pride and in opposition to conservative residents who wish to censor them. 

"Those objecting to the issuance of a parade permit for Starkville Pride have registered at least two objections, both of which are fairly easy to rebut. First, there is the concern that Starkville Pride is seeking an endorsement from the City of Starkville, including actual monetary support for the event. Second, there is the concern that the gay pride parade will involve public exhibitions of lewd behavior. 

"If Starkville Pride is indeed seeking an endorsement or sponsorship for their parade, this cannot be used as a justification for denying them a permit altogether. Put simply, there are only three things a government can do when it comes to human behavior – it may prohibit, permit, or promote. When that behavior takes the form of assembling to advance a particular viewpoint, the only reasonable option is to permit it." . . .

Trump Savaged Hillary And Obama In Front Of Marines — Listen To How They React

Daily Caller  Video at the link.

Since Trump became president, ISIS has lost 3/4ths of its territory. The terror group reached its peak under the Obama administration.

. . . " The biggest applause lines came at the expense of Donald Trump’s predecessor and his 2016 presidential opponent.

"At one point in the speech, Trump was describing how America would reach Mars under his leadership. Trump spoke about the testing of new rockets and said, “Very soon we are going to Mars.”

"Trump knocked Hillary Clinton by saying, “You wouldn’t have been going to Mars if my opponent won. That I can tell you.”

We are finally going to lead again. You see what’s happening. You see they are rockets going up left and right. You haven’t seen that in a long time. Very soon we are going to Mars. You wouldn’t have been going to Mars if my opponent won. That I can tell you. You wouldn’t even be thinking about it. You wouldn’t be thinking about it. My new national strategy for space recognizes that space is a war-fighting domain, just like the land air and sea.

"The audience roared at the comment." . . .

What about Hillary?

As in "What About Bob?"

Jeannie DeAngelis: Oh, No! 'What Happened' to Hillary's Wrist?

Pretty snarky; good thing this is written by a woman. TD

"The former first lady's unsuccessful effort to steady herself was remedied by a white male escort who likely convinced his wife to vote for Trump."

Hillary Clinton Fractures Wrist After Slipping In Bathtub  . . . "Hillary’s trip to India has been controversial due to her remarks about the Trump White House and its supporters. Without saying the actual word, Clinton pretty much said that anyone who voted for Trump is deplorable, a racist, and a misogynist. Clinton also channeled her inner-northeastern elitism, saying while she lost to Donald J. Trump in one of the most stunning political upsets in American political history, she dominated the areas that matter." . . .

Hillary is just an example of Democrats turning Americans against one another You know.

"You know, 'You didn't like black people getting rights, you don't like women, you know, getting jobs, you don't want to, you know, see that Indian-American succeeding more than you are,"  she said of Trump voters.

Andrew McCabe Found Guilty ... FIRED!

"And it doesn’t look there’s much for the recently-fired careerist to work with. He’ll probably be okay, though. Andrew McCabe has an estimated net worth of $11 million."   Colin Kalmbacher

Socio-Political Commentary

The Justice Department dealt a stunning blow to former Acting FBI Director Andrew McCabe on Friday night, firing him just days before he would have been eligible for a lifetime pension after determining that he lied to investigators reviewing the bureau’s probe of Hillary Clinton’s email server.

" 'Pursuant to Department Order 1202, and based on the report of the Inspector General, the findings of the FBI Office of Professional Responsibility, and the recommendation of the Department’s senior career official, I have terminated the employment of Andrew McCabe effective immediately," Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in a statement.

" 'I have terminated the employment of Andrew McCabe effective immediately."- U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions

" 'After an extensive and fair investigation and according to Department of Justice procedure, the Department’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) provided its report on allegations of misconduct by Andrew McCabe to the FBI’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR)," Sessions said." . . .

FBI Recommends Firing Former Deputy Director Andrew McCabe  . . . "The recommendation apparently resulted from a report by the Justice Department’s inspector general, which found that McCabe leaked sensitive details about the FBI’s investigation of the Clinton Foundation to a Wall Street Journal reporter and then lied about it to the IG’s office." . . .

Thomas Lifson: McCabe waiting for his indictment now  "The odds are very high that an indictment will be forthcoming for Andrew McCabe. As the ever-alert Sundance of Conservative Tree House points out, the statement on his firing by AG Sessions specifically noted that he “lacked candor” (the FBI’s expression for lying) “under oath.” . . .

Law & Crime: Andrew McCabe Just Lost A $2 Million Pension and There’s Not Much He Can Do About It  . . . "Prior to Sessions’ decision, McCabe was widely expected to retire this Sunday, his 50th birthday, to take advantage of the FBI’s minimum retirement age and begin collecting a pension estimated at roughly $55,000 per year. Now, of course, because he was fired, McCabe is no longer entitled to said pension." . . .

. . . "And it doesn’t look there’s much for the recently-fired careerist to work with. He’ll probably be okay, though. Andrew McCabe has an estimated net worth of $11 million."

National Review: Sessions Fires Former FBI No. 2 McCabe Two Days before His Scheduled Retirement  . . . "President Trump and other Republicans have repeatedly criticized McCabe for his role in the investigation into Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email server. McCabe’s critics cite campaign contributions, made to the Senate campaign of McCabe’s wife, by a political committee run by longtime Clinton-ally Terry McAuliffe." . . .

CNN’s absurd reaction to Andrew McCabe's firing. But consistent with the character of this source

Patricia McCarthy  "Channel surfing after the announcement that AG Sessions had indeed fired Andrew McCabe was like being yanked into the Twilight Zone.  On Fox, Laura Ingraham addressed the firing calmly from all sides along with her guests Sara Carter, Alan Dershowitz, Harmeet Dhillon and Jonathan Turley.  

Switch to CNN and one would be told that it was Trump who did the firing, that Sessions did it to keep his job.  Barely mentioned was the fact that the recommendation to fire McCabe came from the FBI's own Office of Personal Responsibility (OPR), an almost unprecedented event.  Don Lemon and his guests were apoplectic that this "fine and respected" man has had his pension taken away.  They were not concerned at all about what he may have done to elicit the OPR's recommendation that he be fired.  Not one bit.  

"This bunch takes as factual that Trump is evil and that he colluded with Russia, even though they know very well that he did not.  They know that the whole "Trump colluded with Russia" theory was dreamed up by the Clintons to excuse and explain her loss to the man her crowd and the media thought had no chance of victory.  But they still think the American people are so dumb that we don't know what they know.  They still think they can sell their anti-Trump hatred with lies and snake oil.  And Friday night, CNN was simply outraged that an object of Trump's well-deserved wrath was fired.

"But to CNN the Stormy Daniels story is even more important than McCabe's firing." . . .

Pretty consistent with CNN's idea of "journalism":

In 2011, CNN Reporter Dan Lothian Asks Obama: Are GOP Candidates "Uninformed, Out Of Touch, Or Irresponsible?"

The Obama years may go down as the worst display of journalism in U.S. history. Beginning with their sickening display of sycophancy toward whom I consider the worst president in history, domestically and internationally. TD

CNN: a low point in journalism

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